Sales-indicating tablet



No Model.)

H. H. FREER 8v C. MAGCALLUM.

SALES INDICATING TABLET.

No. 578,557. Patented Mar. 9,1897.

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Tn: Noams paens ce vncrommc UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY HALL FREER AND COLIN HACCALLUM, OF PONTIAC, MICHIGAN.

SALES-INDICATlNG TABLET.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 578,557, dated March 9, 1897.

Application led November 2, 1896. Serial No. 610,823. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern.-

Be it known that we, HARRY HALL FREER and COLIN MACCALLUM,citizens of the United States,residing at Pontiac,county of Oakland, State of Michigan, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Debit-Tablets; and we declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

Our invention has for its object a debit-tablet for the convenient and ready charging of small accounts of even change; and it consists of the construction, combination, and arrangement of devices hereinafter described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view of the device. Fig. 2 is a central cross-section. Fig. 3 is a detail view of the tray. Fig. A is a detail view of one of the stripsbefore being cut into separate cards, illustrating` the process of construction. F'ig. 5 is a cross-section of one of the cards on the line 5 5, Fig. e. Fig. (5 is a view of the check-ring with cards secured thereupon.

Our device is intended and adapted for a variety of uses, as, for example, in keeping account of small purchases at a cigar-store, or at a bar, or at a lunch-room, or at a hotel, and for analogous uses where amounts of purchases are to be recorded.

Our invention contemplates the employment of a tray, (indicated in the drawings at A,) which may be made of any suitable material, as, for example, of sheet metal. It might be made of wood or cardboard or other material, as our invention is not limited to any particular material from which the tray shall be constructed.

The tray is constructed and arranged to support properly a series of cards, (indicated at B.) These cards in the process of their formation are preferably formed in strips, as indicated in Fig. 4:, the strips being afterward cut to form the individual cards. The cards are formed with perforations h of desired size, the perforations being covered with a strip of paper or other suitable thin material,

(indicated at 5'.) These strips b are printed to designate an account of desired amount, as, for example, five cents, ten cents, or any other amount which maybe required. These strips b may be printed with different colors to indicate different amounts. Thus, for example, a strip to indicate a charge of five cents might be printed in a certain predetermined color, and other strips to indicate a charge of ten cents might be printed with some other predetermined color. lVhile we do not limit ourselves to any precise order of arrangement in which these strips b' may be printed, we have found it convenient to print the desired numeral 5, 10, the., as the case may be, intermediate the extremities of the card, and then to carry out to the right and left therefrom a series of rings or zeromarks b2, located directly over the perforations b in the strip therebeneath. The thiol;- ness of the cord beneath the strip b would to some extent allow a pencil or other suitable instrumentto be inserted through the Zeromarks to puncture the strips b, the puncturing of said strips indicating a charge correspending to the numeral upon the individual card. In order, however, to enable the puncturing of the strips b to be made more clearly and more effective, our invention contemplates raising the individual cards B above the bottom of the tray, which may readily be done by forming the tray with longitudinal strips a a intermediate the lateral edges ot' the tray, so that the individual cards B will be raised intermediate their ends to allow a deeper thrust of the pencil or other instrument in puncturing the strips b.

The cards B may be supported in the tray in any proper manner, so as to be made removable. rllo this end the tray maybe formed with lateral flanges forming grooves (indicated at ai) to receive the ends of the cards, the cards being readily slipped into these lateral grooves of the tray. In this manner the cards are held firmly in place, while at the same time they may be readily removed therefrom, so that the cards may be replaced.

It will be convenient to provide each card roo with such a number of perforations and zeromarks as that when all the marks are punctured it will indicate a total in one or more dollars. Thus a iive-cent card when completely punctured would indicate a charge of one dollar, for example, and a ten-cent card when completely punctured a total account of two dollars. Then a given card has been entirely punctured, it may be removed and placed upon a cheek-ring C and another unpunctured card put in :its place on the tray.

In order that an individu al aceou nt may be indicated at all times without reference to any book or even to the check-ring, the new card, which has taken the place of one put upon the check-ring, may have written thereupon in pencil the amount of the charge to a given party when the new card was put into the tray. For example, if a single ten-cent card entirely punctured has been removed to the check-ring the new card put into the tray would have written thereupon the sum of two dollars, which amount, together with any number of punctures upon the new card at any time, would indicate the total of an individual account at that time.

The cards B it is contemplated to furnish in suitable quantities, so that they may be readily replaced as required,

It is well understood that it is often very difficult and sometimes practically impossible to charge up in the bool; accounts of this character and keep them accurate where sales are being rapidly made, in consequence of which the salesman has been liable hitherto to overlook many charges which should have been entered; but by our improved device the charge may be readily and quickly made as to make such a record every way feasible and practicable. A debit-tablet lying on the counter or adjacent thereto can readily be punctured almost instantaneously by the salesman by simply thrusting a pencil or other instrument through the strip b at the points of the zero-marks.

The tablet may be made of any desired length or width. lts utility is apparent.

It will be understood that we do not limit ourselves to any particular amounts to be indicated by the individual cards 13, and that a single card might indicate at one side one amount, as, for example, five cents, and on the other side of the center ten cents. In such a case of course the total amount indicated when the card had been entirely punctured would be one dollar and fifty cents.

XVhat we claim as our invention is'- l. A tablet provided with perforated cards, having a cover-strip over the perforations, said cover-strip .constructed to indicate a desired amount, substantially as set forth.

2. A tablet having in combination, a supporting-tray and perforated cards, provided with cover-strips constructed to indicate desired amounts, substantially as described.

3. A tablet having in combination, a supporting tray, provided with longitudinal flanges intermediate its edges and perforated cards supported upon said tray, said cards provided with cover-strips constructed to indicate given amounts, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

a. A tablet having in combination, a supporting-tray and perforated cards, provided with cover-strips constructed to indicate desired amounts, said cards made removable from the tray, substantially as described.

5. A tablet having in combination, a tray constructed with grooves at its lateral edges and with a flange intermediate said edges, and perforated cards provided with coverstrips constructed to indicate given amounts, arranged substantially as and in the manner described.

lu testimony whereof we sign this specifi lation in the presence of two witnesses.

HARRY HALL FREER. COLlN MACCALLUM.

Witnesses:

N. S. WRIGHT, JOHN F. MILLER. 

